Shepherdsville dates to 1793, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 40% of U.S. towns · #96 of 142 in Kentucky. What drives it
Most of Shepherdsville was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1996. Its Register listing is the Bank of the Commonwealth. Below: maps from 1886 on and the census since 1800.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1806.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Shepherdsville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Shepherdsville is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #96 of 142 in Kentucky. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Shepherdsville’s overall grade.
Kentucky towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Kentucky town has 29.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Shepherdsville’s 0.7 sits below most of its state (24% of Kentucky towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B. The pre-1940 share (±1.3 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1793.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Shepherdsville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
1886Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Shepherdsville, 1793 to 1967
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Native Americans have been shown to have lived in the area for at least 15,000 years.
The vicinity was originally known by European Americans as "Bullitt's Lick" for the salt licks discovered by surveyor Capt. Thomas Bullitt in 1773. The area was home to Kentucky's first commercial salt works. These were shuttered in the 1830s because of competition from Virginian works along the Kanawha River (now in West Virginia). Shepherdsville developed around the mill and store erected along the Salt River by Adam Shepherd, who had purchased 900 acres (360 ha) in the area. The city received its charter in 1793 and was designated as the county seat when Bullitt County was formed in 1796.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Shepherdsville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1949Shepherdsville sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Shepherdsville.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Shepherdsville
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Shepherdsville’s post office has been open since 1806. Another post office, Salt River, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Shepherdsville
1806–today
Salt River
1886–1906
18001910today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Oak GroveSalt River
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Shepherdsville
HallJacksonMaramanSmith
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Shepherdsville’s history
What year was Shepherdsville founded?
In 1793, according to Wikidata. Shepherdsville’s post office opened in 1806, and the census of 1800 counted 96 people here.
How does Shepherdsville rank for history?
Shepherdsville is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #96 of 142 in Kentucky. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Shepherdsville?
One place: the Bank of the Commonwealth (listed 1987).
How old are the homes in Shepherdsville?
2% of Shepherdsville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.3 points), against a typical 5.9% for a Kentucky town; the median home was built in 1996.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (9), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
2019
2019
2019
2019
2017
2012
2007
2006
2004
